How do I make my site appear first in Google Search results?

Everyone asks us this question and the answer from Google is: there is no secret, there are only good practices.

I was searching for some information for my client, and came across this from Google that reminds me that there is no quick and easy answer to getting on the first page (other than paying for Google Ads!).

Here are the best practices for improving your ranking in Google search results:

Provide high quality content on your site. Google tries to find the best answer for our users’ requests; if you write the best material, you’re in the game. Use the Search Analytics report to see which queries lead to your pages, and what the click-through rate is for links to your site.

Make your site mobile friendly. Many users search on mobile devices; our search results favor pages that we think answer the user’s request best with the best possible user experience on their platform.

Use informative titles and snippets. Good, clear titles and accurate meta tag descriptions help us understand the purpose of a page and generate useful snippets in our search results. Learn more.

Add structured data to enable additional search result features such as stars, event information, or site search boxes, which add to the user experience, making your site more valuable to readers. Read more about structured data or use our tools.

Make sure that you follow our guidelines for good sites and avoid pitfalls that could affect your search ratings.